IAM Advanced Rider Training - Observed Ride #1

[exportman]

totally agree exportman did the  masters with IAM sefton another good group

Taking my Masters later this month  hopefully it wont be too cold.


Casbar  If I am cracking on riding twisty A & B roads  with a NSL  I'm generally in 2nd Gear only changing up to 3rd if the road changes to gentle sweeping bends.  Second gives me the  most control.  On a motorway  I would be in anything from 3rd to 6th depending on the traffic flow. 

[Ganesh]

Not being in the same category as Exportman, Casbar and others who have doen the IAM/RoSPA, so not sure if this is right. I tend to work on the revs and not the gear depending on the conditions. I keep mine between 3-4000 and change gear as and when needed. That range keeps me within the speed limits depending on the gear and enough in the power range to change speed. Planned over takes usually change to put me 4-6000. Although it does pull comfortably from 2,500 anything below gets a bit lumpy, need a bit more planning and distance if overtakes required.
My old CBF1000 was a bit different although I can't remeber what range that used to work in but it was higher.

[MacJ]

I was taught from square on to be aware of'Engine Sympathy' and to neither over rev or over strain the engine. The motors in these bike have tremendous low down torque and do not need the high revs of a multi-cylinder. Cruising at 55 on an open road in 3rd. just seems contrary to being in sympathy with the engine. I would be in 5th or 6th.
It's also going to kill your fuel economy and pump out much more pollution.

Having said that each of us has a different comfort zone and I suppose ASC will come to your rescue.

[guest5111]

Well that's cleared that up then 


You all know about my limited experience, but so far I think I'm in the 'engine sympathy' category, balanced with sufficient responsiveness to each situation. The 1200 is so torquey there is lot of overlap and I suspect this is reflected in the discussion above. My current thinking, very much open to persuasion, is:


1st - moving off, crawling traffic, or coming up to a junction where I've assessed I may (probably) have to stop
2nd - moving up to speed, or maintaining throttle in a village or cluttered 30mph zone
3rd - my gear of choice for most 30mph towns/villages or 50mph B roads (or cruising on a motorway when I forget to change up... )
4th - relaxed cruising on predictable A roads
5th - busier dual carriageways with fluctuations in speed
6th - Motorways and dual carriageways with steady traffic, constant speeds

[Casbar]

Taking my Masters later this month  hopefully it wont be too cold.


Casbar  If I am cracking on riding twisty A & B roads  with a NSL  I'm generally in 2nd Gear only changing up to 3rd if the road changes to gentle sweeping bends.  Second gives me the  most control.  On a motorway  I would be in anything from 3rd to 6th depending on the traffic flow.

I use the gear as required to be able to rev if required to always have power, not needing to change down to accelerate, but I probably wouldn't be staying in 2nd, engine sympathy is also a consideration. We are not training to be Police pursuit riders, when on a job its a different matter. Good luck with the Masters,  I would be interested in the differences between Masters and RoSPA Gold, it makes me smile now IAM are marketing Masters as the highest civilian qualification, think RoSPA might disagree with that Saying that, I did my IAM and RoSPA on the same day, although the tests were similar, I found the RoSPA more challenging not sure why though, both examiners were serving Police Officers.

[Sprintgull]

Really enjoyed the vid, a really good refresher. I did my IAM about 8 years ago and still remember the drills and acronyms (TUG, IPSGA etc). I think I had 6 or 7 sessions with the Solent group before I was deemed ready to go. The day of the test, well I should have stayed in bed. Banging headache, cack handed, (migraine sufferers will understand) and on any other day I would not have gone out. But I did, and quite rightly I failed. Quickly re-arranged another test and passed comfortably. There was a good lesson because the effect on my riding, therefore safety was extreme!
One thing I did pick up was a good technique for when you are tired: do your own commentary. Keeps you focused until you can stop and also is useful revision.
The only thing I disagreed with IAM on was how far to the left to move in right handers. I come from Devon and know that things live in hedges so tended to stay a couple of feet out, sacrificing a small amount of forward visibility and speed. Anyway, not long after the test I'd just picked up my nice shiny serviced and washed K1300GT and was pottering home on the A272 when a pheasant shot out of the hedge on a right hander. Big cloud of feathers then nothing except the odd feather now and then. Puzzled I stopped and the deceased miscreant was wedged in the front suspension, having whacked the oil cooler and dropped its own fluids all over the bike. £400 later, oh how I laughed....
Keep going, the IAM is well worth the time and effort. Made me much more aware and safe.

[guest5111]

Presumably if you'd ridden a few more miles the bird would have cooked 'Bear Grylls' style on the engine, and you could have enjoyed a tasty snack?  ;D


I hit a deer in my Volvo V70 a couple of years ago, 50mph down an A road. My wife was in the passenger seat, and that day I understood the value of the laminated screen which bowed but held. A biker would have been hurt, no doubt, and there was nothing that could have been done about it as they just spring out. I was a little slow though, and didn't put it in the boot.


Thanks for the sharing your experience. I think all the best folks pass 2nd time .... (me on my driving test). As a professional trainer I've observed the people who learn the most in the long term on a training course are the ones who make the most mistakes.

[exportman]

Life is a continuous learning experience.  First thing you have to do is learn how to stay alive long enough to enjoy it

[guest4389]

ROSPA gold & IAM masters the same but every examiner has there own little differences so they will always pull you on something trivial   
we teach to keep revs mid range when approaching any hazards & always on the twisty bits
this gives you a lot more control & engine breaking Bike engines are designed for high revs [that must be why I use lots of fuel & tyres]
One of the most common faults we have with students is taking bends in to high a gear [low revs] 

[guest4389]

Good look with your masters test exportman

[Sprintgull]

Presumably if you'd ridden a few more miles the bird would have cooked 'Bear Grylls' style on the engine, and you could have enjoyed a tasty snack? ;D

Good point.  However in a Fawlty-esque fit of rage I yanked it out of the bike and drop-kicked it over the hedge.  The only result of that was that I now needed to clean the boot.  It was well mangled....  But, I found a dead and still warm deer while walking down a lane and sold it to the chef in a nearby pub for a tenner!  Long time ago!